Newbie wondering about SPoD

Hi, I only just bought VF3 4 days ago (together w/ the DC)... So I am a complete newbie... But one who may just join in the fight for VF's survival - I have played about 20 hours since then ;-) Q: SPod... I know theoretically how to do it... only can't get it to work... Can you give me some more Info on timing the moves? Thx

The SPoD. The elusive Akira special and the coolest looking move ever made in a fighting game.

There are a few things you should check to see if you're doing it right.

1. Can you do the reverse bodycheck (RBC) consistently on it's own? Practice the RBC on it's own (<font color=white>b,df+P+G</font color=white>) to make sure you've got the <font color=white>b,df+P+K</font color=white> motions down well. This is usually most people's difficulty - sometimes they go too fast and end up cranking out <font color=white>b,f+P+K</font color=white> or something of the like.

2. There can be no overlap between the moves at all. This, too, is a very common mishap. Overlapping the Stun Palm with the RBC motions will get you nothing unfortunately. In order to ensure no overlap, try doing the Stun Palm, RBC as <font color=white>f+P+K+G, b,df+P+K</font color=white>. The forward motion with the Stun Palm is fine, and it won't let you do the <font color=white>b,df+P+K</font color=white> too soon.

3. As for speed - in VF2 you had to enter it in at insane speeds...VF3 is much more forgiving. Yes, it's fast but not spastic Start slow, concentrating on the accuracy of your moves and then speed up gradually until you start to get it to come out.

I would highly recommend not worrying about the Double Palm portion just yet - make sure you can 2/3 SPoD consistently before trying to throw in the <font color=white>b|f+P</font color=white> motion (The '<font color=white>|</font color=white>' notation there indicates that you can do either <font color=white>b+P</font color=white> or <font color=white>f+P</font color=white>).

I personally like to do the following motions <font color=white>P+K+G, b,df+P+K, b+P</font color=white> however a lot of people like to roll to double palm motions up to <font color=white>f+P</font color=white>. It's your choice, really, whichever is most comfortable.

So, in summary, work on the 2/3 SPoD first, trying <font color=white>f+P+K+G</font color=white> instead of <font color=white>P+K+G</font color=white> for the Stun Palm to get no overlap and gradually increase your speed to keep your accuracy high and you should be SPoDing in no time!

It's very possible to produce a 'roll your own' SPoD-like sequence but this is not the SPoD, of course. When executed properly, the three moves blend seamlessly together very quickly. Come to think of it, just watch the opening introduction of the game - you will see Akira perform 2/3 SPoD against Wolf to end up behind him. The whole SPoD just has an extra Double Palm added at the end. It's too bad that the old intro for VF3 cannot be accessed since it showed Akira peforming the whole thing .

On a side note, Dural can also perform the SPoD in the Dreamcast version, however the animation is that taken from the VF2 SPoD - which in my opinion looks way nicer.

if the first hit of an spod hits, are the rest guaranteed?what about the dlc?
also if the first hit of an spod is an MC then are all the following hits MC's or are they just normal? what about the DLC? is the dlc only useful as a juggle?

if the first hit of an spod hits, are the rest guaranteed?what about the dlc?

<hr></blockquote>

If the SPoD motions are performed correctly then, yes, the rest will hit. However, it is possible for your opponent to escape the RBC portion of the SPoD with a df+P+G escape. The timing for the escape is difficult, but not impossible if one knows a SPoD is coming. I have escaped a SPoD in mid-battle and I have also seen others do it succesfully. One exception of note is that if the stun palm KOs your opponent the complete SPoD will not come out even if done correctly.

<blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr>

if the first hit of an spod is an MC then are all the following hits MC's or are they just normal?

<hr></blockquote>

As far as I know, there is no change to the damage of the rest of the hits. There will times where the stun palm will float the opponent depending what you interrupted - in this case, the SPoD will not come out since the opponent is floating.

<blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr>

what about the dlc?

<hr></blockquote>

In order for the DLC to come out, there is no need for the first df+K+G to hit the opponent. It can be blocked from the start and still be completely seen. The df+K+G must either hit the opponent or be blocked - it cannot whiff or the DLC will not come out. Is it only useful as a float? Well, pretty much yes. It's possible to interrupt and float the opponent with the first hit of the DLC and carry on through, however this is rarely practiced. A major downfall to the *ground* DLC is that even if the first two parts (df+K+G,f+P) hit the opponent, they can still block the bodycheck. Some use the DLC on the ground if the opponent is near the edge of the ring as a means to push them out. Be careful in this case as Akira can be thrown during the bodycheck animation. Overall, the DLC is primarily useful as a float tool (a darn good one too, i might add .